


What is Love?

by teamcharm



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Gen, bro!!! they are siblings!!!!!, i'd say vague implied claude/lorenz but. he gets mentioned by name so. they're not together though, vague spoilers for manuela and lorenz supports. go watch them they're great
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-16 12:11:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21036044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teamcharm/pseuds/teamcharm
Summary: "Does erm..." Lorenz hesitated, "my brotherliness truly annoy you that much? Surely you would tell me if I have offended you?" he asked her earnestly.Lysithea just stared at him. "No it does not," she paused. "Wait what-- hold on. Where is this coming from?""Those are just simply my conclusions based on my observations...I couldn't help but wonder for the cause of such disparity between me and Annette."OR Lorenz and Lysithea discuss love.





	What is Love?

**Author's Note:**

> This has been sitting in my drafts for some time and I decided to actually edit it yesterday+today so. Originally wrote this for something else but i strayed off the original idea so much that I decided to make this its own thing which is fine because i love these purple siblings. I adore their supports and ugh, I can't believe lorenz is lys' brother!!!

Her teeth chattered together. 

Lysithea was not expecting today be this cold, and in reality it wasn't...but the wind was just so chilly. As much as she loathed to admit it, she was underdressed for this march. Claude mentioned to her it might be windy, but she dismissed it thinking it would just be a small breeze that softly tickled her skin. 

What a fool she was. 

But part of her didn't bother to ask for extra clothes from her allies because of her pride. Damnit, if she walked into this mess unprepared she's going to walk out of it the same way too (hopefully without a cold). 

Lysithea rubbed her hands together, but the friction between her hands offered little warmth. 

"Here, take mine," a voice called out to her. Lysithea turned around, and Annette was standing in front of her offering her gloves and a cape. 

The warmth and fluffiness of these articles of clothing offered to her was oh so tempting, but Lysithea steeled herself. "Why?" is what she said to Annette. 

"You just look so cold, and it will be a couple hours before we get back to the monastery. I wouldn't want you to get sick!" Annette explained to her. "So here, take my gloves and cape," she nudged them towards Lysithea. 

"Are you sure? Won't you be cold?" Lysithea eyed Annette with doubt. A little cold wouldn't kill her; she's dealt with worse. Nothing temperature wise will be as awful as Ailell was. Even with the thin clothing she wore, Lysithea felt like she could have passed out any second from the heat. 

"Oh don't worry. I've grown up in the Kingdom; it's not unusual to wake up to 40 centimeters of snow there. A little cold won't kill me," Annette reassured her. "You look like you need this more than me. You're shaking like a leaf!" she pointed out with worry. 

"I'm not!" Lysithea countered. She might be a little cold, but Lysithea did not think she was in such awful shape. 

Annette took one of Lysithea's hands with her free hand. "Your hand is so cold though," she said with a frown on her face. 

Her hand was so warm, Lysithea almost for a second wanted to ask her to keep it there forever. But that was childish of her to wish, so she didn’t. "They're always cold. You don't have to worry about me Annette."

Annette let go of her hand, and returned to its original position of holding the articles of clothing. "No really it's fine! I don't really need these," she pushed the clothing into Lysithea's hands. "Just return it to me later, okay?"

"Well...if you don't mind," Lysithea gave up. She really wanted some warmth on her body. "Thanks."

"Of course! If you still feel cold, lemme know! We can probably find something else for you to wear," Annette gave her a reassuring smile. Lysithea felt a little warmer with just that sight alone. 

"Ah...no that's fine. This is more than enough, thank you Annette."

And with that Annette waved her a goodbye and scurried off to somewhere else. 

Lysithea tried on Annette's gloves. They felt soft to her touch, and the wool tickled her skin. The gloves were neither big or small, they were a snug fit to her hand. Her hands instantly felt warmer with them on...perhaps she was grateful for Annette. 

Next came to put on her cape but...Lysithea held Annette's cape in her hands for a second. Her cape smelled like her, rose petals. A smell that she surprisingly did not hate. It was comforting. 

Lysithea kicked herself for being so foolishly smitten with Annette. Being in love is a disease, she concluded, as she wrapped the cape around herself. 

Her body was already warming up...Lysithea needed to say thank you to Annette later. 

As she lost herself to her thoughts, an unexpected voice called out to her. 

"Oh, so Annette can offer her gloves and cape to you, but you yell at me when I do the same?" 

"GAH!" Lysithea almost jumped out of her boots. "Lorenz! Don't sneak up on me like that," she scolded him. 

"My apologies for startling you," Lorenz apologized to her. "But I could not help but to watch your conversation with Annette."

"You mean eavesdrop? Don't you know it's rude to listen to conversations you're not part of," she once again scolded him. For someone who was hung up on nobility, he sure did not follow any proper etiquette. 

"Ah yes," he looked a little bit ashamed. "I apologize for such improper etiquette and breach of privacy, however. I also think it's important to bring this up."

"Bring what up?" Lysithea stared at him with her brows furrowed. Was this about the atrocious nutrition bar he gave to her yesterday? She already moved past that...oh no is he going to make her try more of them. Maybe she should stop eating so much sugar if it would stop making Lorenz give her terrible tasting food. 

"Regarding the way you treat me-"

"Is this about the nutrition bar you gave me yesterday because that should not be called food," Lysithea cut him off before he could finish. "And I already moved past it. It’s just food. You’re not upset about that are you?" 

"Ah not at all...however, it just simply did not suit your palate. They were not...‘atrocious’ as you called it," Lorenz recalled their conversion from yesterday. 

"Give that to Raphael, I’m sure he’ll agree with me," she rested her case. 

Lorenz frowned "Raphael has...peculiar tastes," he concluded. "These were specifically made for you in mind with the finest ingredients from Fodlan."

"Eugh..." What a waste of Fodlan’s resources. "I didn’t know you hated me this much," Lysithea said. 

Lorenz wouldn’t stop giving her awful tasting food in hopes of improving her health. However some fancy nutrition bar wouldn’t change the fact that her lifespan has been shortened, or at least Lysithea thought so. Her issues were caused by having two crests, not because of her ‘poor diet’.

Lorenz frowned "I do not hate you, I simply care about your health."

Lorenz was a good guy with good intentions which is why Lysithea felt slightly bad for feeling irritated with him. "I know. But it's not like I can't take care of myself, you know that right."

"Of course, you're more than capable. I don’t doubt your abilities, but it's important to accept help from others as well...Which is why I wonder-- why do you treat me and Annette quite differently?" 

_ Huh? _

"Does erm..." Lorenz hesitated, "my brotherliness truly annoy you that much? Surely you would tell me if I have offended you?" he asked her earnestly. 

Lysithea just stared at him. "No it does not," she paused. "Wait what-- hold on. Where is this coming from?" 

"Those are just simply my conclusions based on my observations...I couldn't help but wonder for the cause of such disparity between me and Annette."

"Well..." Lysithea thought for a second. It was not easy to stump Lysithea, she always had an answer for everything...but now she didn't. She wasn't sure what to say exactly. "You're Lorenz. Is that the answer you were looking for?"

"I'm Lorenz? What does that mean," Lorenz said with the most dissatisfied tone, as if he expected to hear a better explanation. 

"It means Annette is Annette, and You're...you."

"That does not quite answer my question," Lorenz replied. "What's the difference between the two of us? Are we not friends?"

"We are it's just. Ugh. It's different. You're like the brother I never wanted," Lysithea complained. Always fretting, always worrying over her. How did Hilda deal with this; not that Lysithea hated Lorenz’s company, she just sometimes wondered if Lorenz ever took care of himself with all this running around he did for her. 

"Is...that the cause of it then?" Lorenz thought aloud. "Do you view me as a brother figure Lysithea?"

"NO!"

But Lorenz did not hear her protest and continued, "My, that is very touching Lysithea. If I had a sister I’d be honored if it were you. You are brilliant, and house Gloucester would be lucky to have someone like you." 

"You…! Absolutely not! Thank you for the compliments, but I call you my brother in a hypothetical sense." Lysithea felt flustered. 

He chuckled, and she glared at him. "Then what’s the difference?"

"I feel warm," was all Lysithea told to Lorenz. She knew what her words implied, but she didn’t dare to say them out loud. Why did Lorenz care anyways. She didn't need to explain anything to him, even if he was a dear friend. 

"Well...yes. You are wearing Annette's gloves and cape," Lorenz pointed out to her. At the mention of that she wiggled her fingers a bit. Her hands felt warm, a little sweaty under the woolly gloves. "Or, do you perchance mean something more?" he inquired. 

She inwardly sighed. "I'm warm because I'm wearing appropriate clothing for this weather. Can't we just leave it at that? Do you not have far more important things to discuss with me...like our next formation?"

"Perhaps." Lorenz said but he did not elaborate. He just looked at her face, as if he was studying her.

Lysithea did not know what he had to so closely scrutinize her for. Her face was flushed a bit, but she wagered it was because it was chilly outside. It certainly was not because she was head over heels in love with Annette giving her warm clothing. Lysithea may hold some feelings for Annette, but she wasn't completely rendered useless by them.

Finally, after a moment of silence he asked her the question, "Are you, in love?"

"Ugh," Lysithea neither confirmed nor denied to him.

"If that is the case, there is nothing wrong with love Lysithea," Lorenz told her. "It's a wonderful feeling. There is nothing to be ashamed of."

Lysithea didn't hate the concept of love, hell she would even love to indulge in it someday...but the way Lorenz was talking about it made her heart ache a bit. If only she didn't have two crests. Then she could happily hug, kiss, embrace someone without the fear of hurting a loved one. 

"I’m not ashamed," she replied. Lysithea wasn’t ashamed to love. She had no issues with love...it’s the thought of actually acting upon her feelings and impulses that gave her fear. 

"Was I wrong then?"

"I um. Well," Lysithea said, not really sure, "I just don't think I have the time for love," she admitted. 

"Why?" Lorenz stared with a curious look on his face. 

"Love is frivolous," Lysithea stated. "It’s a fleeting feeling. I can’t drop my goals for something not definite...I have so much to accomplish, yet so little time. I just simply don't have time to think about love," she explained her thoughts. 

His face wore a deep frown. It was not the first time the topic of her lifespan has been brought up between the two of them. "What makes you so sure of your shortened lifespan?" 

"My body is just not built for a long life." And it was true. She never asked to have two crests, yet here she was, living with the two of them.

"How do you know that?" Lorenz pressed on. "Surely, if you properly take care of your health...you ought to be able to live a long life?"

"Maybe." Lysithea wasn't certain, but she didn't want to deny his words. It was something Lorenz was determined to prove her wrong, and maybe, just maybe he had a point. Maybe there was hope. Hanneman has mentioned that it could be possible to remove her crests. Maybe she should cling to hope instead of accepting everything at face value.

"I'm here to support you Lysithea. We are friends no?" He asked.

"Yes, we are friends," she affirmed.

"Which is exactly why you shouldn't give up so soon. It’s not like you to give up so easily."

Lorenz did have a point. She wasn’t a quitter once she started something, but maybe it also made her a hypocrite to drop things not worth her time. Precious time that she didn’t have to spare. 

"I understand the importance of achieving your goals, but please, do not forget to think about yourself sometimes too." The irony of these words coming out of his mouth. Lorenz was the epitome of pushing away his desire for the sake of his goals and ambitions. Maybe the two of them are similar in that vein. How ironic, that they would have vaguely similar problems yet be offering advice to one another that they wouldn't follow through because of their duties.

"But..." Lysithea couldn't quite put her finger on it. She knew what she wanted, and what she had to do, but she didn't think much about herself. It wasn’t exactly like she neglected herself or her needs, they were just at a lower priority. Did she really have the time to just give into her wishes? "Hm. I don't know. Having a lover, only for them to die so soon sounds terrible. I don't want to subject anyone to that pain," Lysithea nervously admitted to Lorenz. She’s never said such thoughts aloud. She never talked about love with anyone in a serious sense. 

"Hypothetically speaking, and this is just hypothetically," Lorenz emphasized, "if you are to die soon, would you not leave all of your friends behind too? Do those bonds mean nothing to you?

"Of course not!" Lysithea exclaimed. While she had plans to someday disappear into a peaceful life of a commoner if her time allowed it, she had no plans of abandoning any friendships she made. Lysithea did appreciate the relationships she curated over the years. Her life would have been a whole lot lonelier without the people in her life.

"Then how is love and friendship different? You certainly have not avoided making any friends, and love and friendship both require the same foundations do they not?" Lorenz questioned her. 

"I suppose you have a point," Lysithea conceded; he did have a point for once. Platonic and romantic love were not too far off from each other, even if they meant different things to people. They required the same foundations like trust, understanding, supporting one another.

"It's far too soon to say you will not live long. If you take care of yourself properly, I'm sure you'll live a healthy long life. As long as I stand I'll make sure of that," Lorenz reassured her. His words warmed her heart a bit...a future like that sounds nice. The hope of a future. It's a luxury Lysithea craves, but she knows she won't have. Oh how she wished to foolishly cling to the hope of a future for once. 

"I'd like that," she told Lorenz. 

"Good, I’m glad to hear that. I look forward to our future together, where we are thriving and making Fodlan a better place," he said with much enthusiasm.

She stifled her laughter into her hands. Typical Lorenz, he cared for this country so much. Maybe more than it deserved. 

He gave her a look, but decided to ignore her laughter. "In this future, I hope you can have a lover as well...of course there is nothing wrong with remaining unwed, but I do hope you have the choice to do so."

"It’d be nice if I could," Lysithea admitted. 

"Lysithea, I have a question for you."

"What is it?"

"If you’re afraid...is it not natural to fear love? It's a multifaceted feeling after all," he pointed out to her. 

Whatever serious conversation Lorenz wanted to have with Lysithea about love went out the window because these words sounded familiar to her. Lysithea racked her brain, this...this sounded familiar. "Ah! No wonder this sounds familiar I remember...that sounds like something out of one of your poems," Lysithea told him.

"Ah, pardon?" Lorenz weakly asked her. "My...poems?"

"Yeah. Like," Lysithea for s second thought about how they went, "the one about the beautiful emerald eyes that sp-"

As soon as the words started coming out of Lysithea's mouth, Lorenz looked mortified "Not out loud! Forget you saw that!" He pleaded. She's never seen him squirm this much before, and it wasn't like he was the hardest person so ruffle up. Claude was certainly extremely good at it.

"It's kind of hard to when you keep making goo-goo eyes at Claude," Lysithea deadpanned. 

He audibly gasped. "I absolutely. Do not. Make... _ Goo-goo eyes _," he slowly said the words aloud. 

Lorenz was hopeless, Lysithea concluded. "You're here giving me love advice, yet fumbling because I merely suggested that you have some sort of feelings for Claude. Do you truly lack self awareness for how you feel?" If he had a say in her own feelings, than Lysithea will voice her own opinions about Lorenz's love life too. She was tired of seeing 'secret' glances between the two during war meetings. 

"That- this isn't about me!" Lorenz sputtered out. 

"But your poems say otherwise. For all that talk you do, you sound awfully lonely. ‘Amid time’s flow I mourn… Bonds I’m not sure I can ever rend… As my mind clings to desperate thoughts-" she recalled another poem she remembered from his journal, but as she was doing so Lorenz cut her off. 

"You....you have it memorized…?" There was a different sense of dread that filled Lorenz this time. 

Lysithea shrugged. "I have a good memory." She didn't have as much time to memorize material as she used to during their academy days, but she was proud of her memorization skills. One could call her memory crystal clear. 

"That's..." Lorenz frowned, as if that was a conversation he already had before. "That's not what the poem is about. It's about the ideals of nobility."

"Huh," she was sure that it was about Lorenz feeling lonely. Not that it didn’t change the fact that it sounded like there was a certain element of loneliness attached to the writing. "It's an awfully lonely look on nobility. Nobility this, nobility that-- Lorenz, don't you want to ever make decisions for yourself, and YOURSELF only? You do have that choice after all," Lysithea didn't exactly have that sort of freedom to make decisions for herself. Or so she told herself. 

Lorenz sighed and broke off eye contact with her. "It's not as simple as that. Of course, I have thought about it but I have to think about the greater whole. Be may be what hardships I must endure, it's my duty as nobility to bear it." 

"There's more to life than you noble duties," Lysithea pointed out to him. "Did you not tell the same to me moments ago."

Lorenz stayed quiet for a moment. "I suppose I have. However, I did not tell you to abandon your duties. Being a noble means we are bound to our duties regardless if we truly want them or not." 

Lysithea chuckled at each other's irony. "How ironic for us to give each other the same advice, yet to not listen to one another." 

"Touche..." Lorenz reluctantly agreed. "I suppose it's part of what we've grown up with. It's hard to let go of something you held dearly your whole life."

"How poetic."

"Mm. yes." Lorenz eyed her. "Now tell me-- how did you find out about my poems, let alone read them?"

"Well I found it, and read it. That's what you do with books," Lysithea gave him a rather simple answer. 

He did not look pleased to hear that answer at all.. "And you just? Went through it? Has no one taught you to not go through someone's personal belongings?"

"I know my manners, I'm well aware of that...I just didn't think it was anything important. I thought it was some book from the library."

"Why didn't you return it to me?" Lorenz inquired. "That's what you do when you find lost items."

"Like I said I didn't think it was yours! There was no name on it!" Lysithea snapped at him. It wasn’t her fault he misplaced something and didn’t label it as his."I kept reading it until I realized it was yours because of the handwriting and word choice...Your eloquent writing sounds pretty in the metaphorical sense. I never knew you had such a way with words." 

"Thank you," Lorenz awkwardly coughed. "But I do kindly ask that. Do forget what you saw," he requested with a bit of desperation of his voice. 

"Why, your work is beautiful?"

"Thank you, but _ please _."

"Oh you think I'm going to tell Claude about his-"

Lorenz looked in pain "Lysithea," his voice was strained. "Can we not talk about more important subjects."

"Like the formation plans I brought up earlier?" Lysithea pointed out to him. It’s what they should have been talking about, yet here they were talking about their love lives. 

"Yes, that." He quickly agreed with her. 

Lysithea laughed at his flustered attitude. What a mess. "I'm just kidding Lorenz; Claude's influence," she teased him. 

He pursed his lips. "Of course. He's a terrible influence."

"Don’t worry my lips are sealed," Lysithea reassured Lorenz. "Let’s just keep this conversation between the two of us." Not that she thought Lorenz would go off running off to Annette and try to get the two together but. It was for the best that this conversation was only meant for the two of them. 

"Mmm agreed."


End file.
